Talking-machine



P. A. HQRSWELL.

TALKING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 17, l9l6.

1,354,301, I PatentedSept. 2s, 1920.

jzvei t mm? W inure STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PERCY A. I-IORSWELL, or CLEVELAND, OHIO, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO- THE CLEVELAND PHONOGBAPH COMPANY, or CLEVELAND, 01110, A CORPORATIQN OF OHIO.

' TALKING-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Sept. 28, 1920.

Application filed March 17, 1916. Serial No.L84,762.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, PERCY A. HoRsWELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Talking-Machines, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description. I

This invention relates to talking machines or phonographs and especially to a type or form wherein there is a cabinet having a hinged lid or cover which when closed is designed to cover and inclose the sound reproducer and horn or sound conducting means, and when elevated is designed to act as a reflector to reflect the sound forwardly, the horn or sound conducting means which for convenience will be termed the horn extending rearwardly so as to direct the sound into the cover when the latter is elevated.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide in a machine of the character above stated, means whereby, when the cover is elevated, the horn and sound reproducer may be swung upwardly and readily re-- zained in inoperative position with the needle off the record, so that it will be convenient to change the record or needle. A further object is to provide certain improvenents in the shape of the horn, which enable zhe horn to be readily swung upwardly and .earwardly to inoperative position and also )revent or minimize the reflection of the iound Waves back into the horn and addi- ;ionally permit the cover to be lowered to :losed position without engaging the horn tlld without requiring a cover of very con- :iderable depth. I

A still further object is to arrange certain )arts of the machine, particularly the rotatng platform which receives the record, s hat a metal cabinet may be used without a erious or noticeable metallic sound or tone eing' produced during the reproduction of record.

The invention may be briefly summarized .s consisting in certain novel details of con- ;truction and combinations and arrange nents of parts which will be described in he specification and set forth 1n the ap nended claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side View f the upper or main portion of the talklng' machine, parts being in section, and the sound reproducer and horn being shown in full lines in inoperative position and by dotted lines in normal operating position; Fig. 2 is a side elevation, with parts in'section, showing the cover closed; Fig. 3 is a top plan view with the cover removed and with the sound amplifier and horn in normal position for operation.

In the drawings represents a cabinet whichis intended to be of such height that the machine may be supported on the floor,as is the case with the usual cabinet machines, and will be provided with suitable doors so that access may be had to the lnterior of the cabinet in which the records are intended to be stored. Thecabinet or casing is provided with a hinged cover 11 which is designed to be swung downwardly to closed position shown in Fig. 2 so as to cover and inclose the platform or record rotating means and the sound amplifier and horn, or to be swung upwardly to substantially vertical position (as shown in Fig. l) where it can be retained by a suitable latching device 12, thus enabling the cover to act as a reflector to reflect forwardly the sound waves directed into it by the horn.

Preferably the cabinet, including the cover, is formed of sheet metal which can be given any suitable finish to resemble mahogany or other wood of which the cabinets are usually formed.

Beneath the top edge of the body portion of the cabinet there is the usual transverse or horizontal partition 13 beneath which will be located the record-revolving motor which is not here shown. ;This motor will drive in the usual way a revolving platform or disk 14 which is designed to receive an ordinary disk record shown conventionally at 15. This platform is either Wholly or partially above the top edge of 'the cabinet so that practically no metallic soundwill be produced' by the instrument. Heretofo-re metal casings or cabinets could not be employed with high efliciency for the reason that a very metallic sound is produced in reproducing the record. 'This I find can be very materially reduced by loeating the revolving platform 14 substantially as shown in the drawings,'so that the record and the point of the reproducing needle is well above and not inclosed by the metal casing or cabinet.

, A sound reproducer 16 is employed which reflect the sound forwardly so as to produce the same results as if a somewhat larger forwardly facing or directed horn were employed.

The rear part of the horn is pivoted so as to swing about a horizontal axis, to a supporting stud 19 whose shank or lower end is received in'a vertical socket at the rear portion of the partition 13. This stud,

which is free to turn about a vertical axis,

is in this case provided at its upper end with a pair of spaced ears and the horn is provided with a lug which extends down between the ears and is connected thereto by a horizontal pin 20. This construction permits the horn and reproducer to swing or move horizontally and at the same time to move vertically.

One of the features of the present invention resides in the shape of the horn, the open rear end of which is, for reasons to be referred to presently, cut on a diago nal plane with respect to the axis of the horn, z'. 6., when the horn is in normal substantially horizontal position the rear open end is in a plane which is oblique to the axis of the horn and which extends from the lower rear part of the horn diagonally upwardly and forwardly. The advantages of this are threefold. It admits of the horn and reproducer being swung upwardly, to a position shown by full lines in Fig. 1 in other words, to inoperative position,-so that the needle can be changed or a record conveniently placed on or removed from the rotating platform 14. It might be pointed out that the pivoting parts, i. e., the parts which are pivotally connected by the pintle 20 are so formed that when the horn is swung upwardly to the position shown by full lines in Fig. 1, the horn is stopped against further rearward movement and preferably without touching the cover or cabinet. Still further objects of inclining the rear part of the horn are, the cover can be swung down over the born (as shown in Fig. 2) without necessitating either a very shallow horn ora very deep cover, and, lastly, the percentage of sound vwaves refiected back from the cover into the horn is minimized. .With respect to the last named substantially at right angles thereto a considerable percentage of the sound waves is reflected back into the horn thus causing a very unsatisfactory reproduction, but if the upper rear part of the horn is cut away as shown this disadvantage is entirely overcome and a good clear reproduction is obtained.

I do not desire to be confined to the exact details-of construction shown, but aim in my claims to cover all modifications which do not involve a'departure from the spirit and scope of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is 1. In a talking machine, a cabinet comprising a body portion having a hinged cover adapted tobe swung downwardly to closed position and upwardly to elevated position, a horizontal platform at the upper part of the cabinet, a sound reproducer and a sound conveying means connected at its forward end to the reproducer and, extending substantially horizontally rearward therefrom, said sound conveying means when in operative position having its rear open end directed toward the cover when the latter is elevated and adapted to be swung upwardly to inoperative position into the cover, said end being inclined from its lower rear portion upwardly and forwardly away from the cover to permit said swinging movement toinoperative position.

2. In a talking machine, a cabinet comprising a body portion having a partition at the upper part thereof and a hinged cover adapted to be swung from lower closed position to upright open position, a sound reproducer, a horn connected at its forward end to the reproducer and having its open rear end directed toward the cover, said *horn when in playing position being substantially horizontal and being pivotally supported on said partition near the cover,

the pivotal support permitting the horn to '110 be swung from the substantially horizontal position upwardly and rearwardly to upright position and "the upper rear part of thehorn being cut away to permit such movement. 1 3. In a talking machine, a cabinet, a hinged cover adapted to be swung from closed position to upright open position, a

.partition at the upper part of the cabinet,

a record rotating means above the partition, a sound reproducer, and a. horn connected at its forward end to the sound reproducer and having its rearopen end directed toward the cover when the latter is in upright position, the hornbeing pivotally supported 1 so as to permit the horn to move horizontally and vertically, said pivotal support for the horn permitting the latter to be swung to upright inoperative position in the cover and be supported in such position,

'4. In a talking machine, a cabinet, a hinged cover adapted to be swung from closed position to upright open position, a partition at the upper part of the cabinet, a record rotating means above the partition, a sound reproducer, and a horn connected at its forward end to the sound reproducer and having its rear open end directed toward the cover when the latter is in upright position, means for supporting the horn so as to permit the horn to move horizontally and vertically, said supporting means for the horn permitting the latter to be swung to upright inoperative position in the cover and to be supported in such position, the rear end of the horn being beveled or inclined from the lower rear portion forwardly and upwardly.

In testimony whereof I hereunto afliX my signature.

PERCY A HORSWELL. 

